A set of charts exploring the unusual structure of Western Australia’s economy; and how it became Australia’s richest state as a result of the China-fuelled ‘resources boom’ of 2005-2015, before falling into recession after the end of the ‘investment phase’ of that boom, and how having squandered a good deal of the revenue bonanza thrown off by that boom, the Government of Premier Colin Barnett (2008-18) left the state with a heavy burden of debt. The Labor Government of Premier Mark McGowan, which is seeking re-election on Saturday, has gotten that problem under control, with the aid of a new iron ore boom, which sees it as perhaps the only government in the world which is now running a budget surplus. The other states and territories are likely to feel aggrieved when they realize how much of this windfall WA is going to keep for itself, as a result of changes to the GST revenue sharing arrangements imposed by the Federal Government (at WA’s behest) in 2018

2021-03-09 Western Australia